A Splash of Love!

Hello, my crafty friends! I hope everyone is doing well. :o)

Today I'm sharing something sweeter than my planned Sweet Saturday post.... my first contribution for this month's I Feel the Love Project recipient. For July, we are sending extra love, sunshine, and support to precious Mariyah, who is 4 years old.  She is disabled and has been receiving extensive PT, OT, and early intervention since she was 1. Not only so, but she also has endured a lengthy hospital stay for an unrelated sickness. Her strength and beauty is an inspiration.

A Splash of Love!

I settled upon different animals about a million times, but in the end opted to make her a sweet fishie. :o) I thought it would be fun to make it a shaped card, so when she has it sitting it out it will almost be like she has her very own bright and sparkly fish bowl. :o)

A wee bit closer:

To make the shape, I welded together this fish bowl from Miss Kate Cuttables with several 1-inch bubbles. Not only did I want it sturdier than the original circular bottom, but it also gave me the perfect opportunity for personalization. I used this heart alphabet for her name to surround her in tiny hearts. :o) Some are pop-dotted for varying dimensions. The blues and green throughout are all glittery Core'dinations Core Couture cardstock.

Instead of using the fish from the cut file, I used this adorable heart-shaped fish. The papers are from a Martha Stewart Valentine's pad, which I lightly inked with Victorian Velvet distress ink. I added googly eyes for extra delight and placed her atop an Action Wobble.

A peek at the dimension... I love how high the Action Wobble lifts the fishie! I hope she enjoys wobbling it around. :o) The interior is washed out in this picture, but is actually a light blue with a wave pattern.

For the three shades of rocks at the bottom of the bowl, I used shimmery DCWV patterned cardstock. The water and bubbles are embossed with the D'vine Swirls folder, while the plant is embossed with Swiss Dots. I wanted a lot of fun texture for Mariyah to explore. I created the splash with my My Favorite Things Fancy Flourish metal die, which is accented with a few rhinestones. Fairly unseen in these photos are the bubbles I made with Glossy Accents. They are bubbling up from the fishie's smile (of course she's smiling at Mariyah all day long!) and within the splash.

My computer-generated sentiment was cut out with Tiny Tag metal dies from My Craft Spot, which I popped up and decorated with a Blueberry Trendy Twine bow and a tiny heart rhinestone. My goal with this card was just to make her smile... to make her a fun little scene that will add a sparkle to her heart and a smile to her day. And of course for her to always know how dearly she is loved by so many. :o)

Thank you for swimming on by! I wish you a blessed and sparkly weekend. :o)

Challenges entered:
 *Crafty Catz~ It's Child's Play
 *Creative Creations~ Shaped Cards
 *Cupcake Craft~ Anything but Square
 *Divas by Design~ Cute
 *DL.Art Thankful Thursday~ July Linky Party (Anything Goes)
 *Fab 'n' Funky~ Anything but Square
 *Love to Create~ Condolence or Support
 *Make It Monday~ Anything Goes
 *Papertake Weekly~ Anything Goes